Walkway builds memories, brick by brick

Published 4:37 am, Friday, January 6, 2017

A brick walkway at the south entrance of the JHS Bowl has been completed with blocks dedicated to the memory of those with a connection to the historic facility.

A brick walkway at the south entrance of the JHS Bowl has been completed with blocks dedicated to the memory of those with a connection to the historic facility.

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Walkway builds memories, brick by brick

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Fans of the historic Jacksonville High School Bowl have helped build a new walkway, brick by brick.

Bricks have been sold for the past two years to complete the design that makes up a walkway on the south side of the building at 215 S. Church St.

The Preservation of the Bowl Committee oversaw installation in the fall after inclement weather kept the project from building steam last year.

Amy Albers, executive director of the Jacksonville Public Schools Foundation and a member of the committee, said the walkway is composed of bricks that have been dedicated to someone or something.

“It’s been quite the project,” Albers said. “It’s been very rewarding.”

The JHS Bowl was built in 1952 to hold events for the school district — particularly basketball games. It has undergone a number of renovations to update and preserve the structure.

Albers said more will be added to the walkway each year as more people buy bricks. More than 300 have been sold so far.

“It’s something that will continually be added to, which I think is important,” Albers said. “We call it the Memory Brick Project, and it honors people, so I think it is important to make sure it is available. I think once people see it, they’ll want to be a part of it.”

Albers said the walkway hasn’t really been seen by a lot of people because basketball season is just starting to pick up.

“We are getting into the busy part of the basketball season to show it off,” she said.

Bricks are available through the preservation committee website or the Jacksonville Public Schools Foundation. Engraved bricks in the words “The JHS Bowl” are $100, while engraved bricks in the border around the words are $50.

The committee is taking on several other projects soon. Some of them involve painting and cleaning, but several are larger-scale projects that need addressed. One of the larger projects is installing a heating and air-conditioning system.

“These are things that need to happen at the Bowl, but they are just beyond our scope at this point,” Albers said. “What has been accomplished so far with the brick project has been through the generosity of several alumni. Kristan Becker Hoffman spearheaded the project and Rouland Construction and Trucking and Steve Morthole Masonry donated labor and concrete to complete the project.”

Some money is set aside for future projects and “we will continue working toward raising the funds to complete them,” Albers said.

Samantha McDaniel-Ogletree can be reached at 217-245-6121, ext. 1233, or on Twitter @JCNews_samantha.